


5 Times Patty and Florence Didn’t Meet And 1 Time They Did

by fangirl_squee



Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: 5+1 Things, F/F, First Meetings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-15 00:54:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21025085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirl_squee/pseuds/fangirl_squee
Summary: Near misses in Bluff City





	5 Times Patty and Florence Didn’t Meet And 1 Time They Did

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to Annie's great art [here](https://twitter.com/dancynrew/status/1142975489205686272)  
and [here](https://twitter.com/dancynrew/status/1144423587874349062) for the inspiration.

_ Beach _

Patricia sighs, leaning back in the lifeguard chair she put next to their headquarters, making a face a the chair sinks a little in the sand. She brought the chair from home after her second shift. Standing for that long was tiring work.

Probably, as a Junior Trainee Lifeguard, she should be out doing patrols with the rest of the Trainees, but as she’d said to her supervisor,  _ someone _ had to stay behind. After all, when people had an emergency situation, sometimes they came looking for  _ you _ , so you needed that central location.

Also, it meant she could work on her side hustle, which was the whole reason she’d taken this crummy summer job in the first place.

She caught sight of two prospective customers, two kids looking shifty-eyed as they walked in an overly-casual way towards her. She tracked their movements with her eyes, feeling pleased about her choice of big, dark sunglasses.

Patricia nodded. “Morning.”

One of the kids, a girl in a one piece with a seagull print, mumbled something.

“Mmhmm, yeah, excellent weather we’re having today,” said Patricia, “Now, seeing as you’ve come to the lifeguard station, I assume you have some kind of emergency.”

“I- are you Patricia Phinkel?” said the girl, clearly the spokesperson of the two.

“Depends,” said Patricia, “who’s askin’?”

The girl frowned. “Uh, me?”

“It’s- forget it,” said Patricia, “Listen kid-”

“I’m not a kid,” said the girl, “I’m  _ twelve _ .”

“Sure, okay,” said Patricia, “Listen,  _ adult _ , if you’re wanting to make a purchase you should say so. Otherwise buzz off.”

“I-  _ we  _ want to buy some fireworks,” said the girl, keeping her voice low, “some  _ cool _ ones.”

“Well, maybe I got that, maybe I don’t,” said Patricia, “You got the money?”

The kids looked at each other for a moment, reaching into the quiet kid’s neon orange fanny pack to pull out a crumpled wad of bills.

“Jesus kid, try for some subtlety,” said Patricia. She stood up. “Here-”

The fanny pack kid paled, their attention caught by something behind them. Patricia looked up to see a tall woman charging towards them. Quickly, she stuffed the money back in the fanny pack and zipped it shut.

“ _ There _ you are, I thought I’d lost you-”

“We were right on the beach,” said the girl, “we didn’t even go out of eyeshot, mom-”

“I told you to stay by our things,” said the woman, “that was our agreement.”

“I’m not one of your officers,” said the girl, “you can’t just give orders!”

The woman huffed a breath. “I- Wait, who are you? Why are you talking to my daughter?”

“I’m a lifeguard,” said Patricia, “One of our duties is to be ambassadors of the beach.”

“Ambassadors of the- actually, no that doesn’t matter,” said the woman, turning back to the kids. “We should head back. The barbeque’s ready.”

“Fine,” said the girl, stomping off as much as it was possible to do on sand.

The woman looked down at her. Patricia was careful not to tilt her head in any way that could indicate her own gaze was wavering from the woman’s face as she took in the details - tall, in clothes that looked new but were a style from a few years ago, something bought and then put away, someone who worked a lot probably. The kid had mentioned officers but if this woman was in the BCPD Patricia didn’t recognise her, which probably meant she was someone too high up to get stuck doing beach patrols.

Extra bad for business then, if she got caught by this woman.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” said Patricia, “Ma’am?”

The woman blinked. “No. Not at this time.”

She turned and walked away, her steps small and precise, making her seem graceful on the sandy terrain.

Patricia hummed to herself, then sat back down, waiting until the woman was far out of hearshot before she let out a breath.

It was a shame about the lost sale  _ but _ she hadn’t gotten caught, so things still felt even, and a momentary loss wasn’t too bad. The summer season was just starting. There’d be plenty more sales to come.

  
  
  


_ In Line for a Concert  _

Florence tapped her foot, checking her watch for what felt like the hundredth time. She wished she’d brought her walkman so she’d have something to focus on, something for her hands to do besides pick at her nails.

Her one night off this month, and she was  _ wasting  _ it in this line. She went up on tiptoes, which was both not really necessary to see over the other, shorter, people in line and also didn’t help her figure out what the delay was in opening the doors. She sighed.

“They’re doing a second soundcheck,” said a voice behind her, “It’s going to be at least another twenty minutes.”

Florence turned to see a woman only a little shorter than her, curly hair piled high onto her head to resemble a mohawk, her faded Bluff City Boardwalk t-shirt in sharp contrast to other people’s coats and flannels.

“How do you know that?” said Florence.

“It’s my job to know things,” said the woman.

Florence’s eyes narrowed. “Is that so?”

“Yeah,” said the woman confidently. She grinned, leaning back against the grimy wall. “It’s just twenty minutes, might even be fifteen if they get stuff right on the first go through.”

Florence sighed. She copied the woman’s motion, leaning carefully back against the wall, the cold of the brick seeping through her worn denim jacket. The spot on the wall put them out of reach of the dim streetlight that had managed to reach the alleyway they were lined up in, throwing their faces into shadow..

“I’m supposed to be back before midnight,” said Florence quietly.

The woman raised her eyebrows, copying Florence’s quiet tone. “You got a curfew?”

“No,” said Florence, “but my daughter does.”

The woman leaned forward, looking around Florence.

“She’s not here,” said Florence, “but she’s supposed to be home before eleven-”

“But if you’re not home, how do you know?”

“Exactly,” said Florence.

The woman laughed, pressing her lips together after as if to retroactively muffle the sound. Despite her worries, Florence felt some of the tension leave her shoulders at the sound.

“You could always leave the show early.”

“ _ Absolutely _ not,” said Florence.

The woman laughed again, leaning a little further towards Florence. Florence realised in a hot jolt that she’d never leant back at all, making their current positions as close as two people could get without touching. She could feel the warmth of the woman’s arm through her jacket, a sharp contrast to the brick wall behind them. 

“Aren’t you cold in that?” said Florence.

“I’ll warm up when I get inside.” The woman paused. “Unless  _ you _ want to warm me up?”

“Excuse me?”

The woman shrugged. “Just offering. No pressure. We probably do still have like, at least fifteen minutes out here though.”

Florence considered her for a moment. She flexed her hands, running her fingers over the top of her ragged nails. The woman’s cocky expression faded, just a little, and Florence felt a hot jolt again at the intimacy of it.

“Fine, yes, okay,” said Florence.

The woman grinned. “O _ kay _ .”

She didn’t waste any time leaning in towards Florence, her cold hand sliding inside of Florence’s jacket. It was an unusual experience, kissing someone who was so close to her height, but a nice one. She could feel the tension uncoiling from her neck and shoulders, worry leaving her mind for once under the woman’s lips.

The woman nipped at her lip and Florence shuddered, pushing her back against the wall. The woman made a small sound into her mouth, clutching at her back.

“Wow,” breathed the woman, “I totally should have talked to you sooner.”

“Probably,” said Florence, and kissed her again.

The rest of the time in line flew by, people pushing past them as the doors finally opened.

Florence lost sight of the woman once they were inside. Probably for the best, she thought. She was far too distracting for everyday life.

  
  
  


_ Radio Station _

Patty liked to drop her tips off to Hector in person. This wasn’t her usual style of distributing information or his usual way of receiving it, but they both appreciated the reassurance of seeing the other in person. 

They knew each other could still be faked, of course, actors or robots or hologram technology. Cameras and microphones could be anywhere at any time, recording them, spying on the truth of their information. Still, there was something Patty always felt calmed by, walking into Hector’s office.

As she was walking in, a woman was leaving, a deep scowl on her face and trench coat swirling dramatically around her feet. Patty raised her eyebrows at the woman, stepping neatly to the side. She had a feeling that the woman would have walked right into her.

She knocked on Hector’s door before she pushed it open, relieved that he was still there. He waved her in, standing to greet her as he always did.

“What was  _ that _ about?”

“What was what about?”

“That woman,” said Patty, waving a hand at the door, “They threatening to shut you down again?”

Hector huffed a laugh. “Always, always, but no, that was… someone with to BCPD. I gave her a tip on her most recent case and apparently it… did not turn out as either of us would have expected.”

“Anything I need to be worried about?”

“Only if you’re with the coastguard,” said Hector.

Patty snorted. As though she would  _ ever _ .

“Now,” said Hector clapping his hands together, “I believe you have something for me?

“Do I ever!” said Patty.

She put the woman out of her mind. If Hector wasn’t worried about it, then neither was she. The man had good instincts.

  
  
  


_ Bluff City Public Record Office _

Florence felt as though someone is following her. Or, no, that wasn't quite right. She felt as if she was following someone else.

“It seems as though,” said Florence, annoyance seeping into her controlled tone, “every time I come here to request a record, it is already taken out.”

The archivist shrugged. “Lot of people have that complaint, but there’s only so many copies of things.”

Florence hummed. “May I see the record of what people have signed out?”

“That’s not really-”

Florence got out her badge and laid it on the desk in front of her. “May I see the record of what people have signed out?” She paused. “Please.”

The archivist looked slowly from the badge, to Florence’s face, to the badge again. They sighed. “Hold on a minute, I’ll get it.”

“Thank you for your cooperation.”

She took the record book over to one of the desks, leafing through it carefully. Most of the sign outs were who she would expect; fellow officers, lawyers, academics, reporters. One name showed up again and again, catching Florence’s eye.

Name: P. F.

Occupation: private citizen

Reason for record request: searching for the truth

Florence went back through the record, checking what records this P.F. had requested, only to find a confusing mess of ideas - police files and newspaper records, which is what she would have thought, but P.F. had also requested things like reports of UFO sightings or shipping records from March 1983 or farmers almanacs from out of state.

“Ma’am- uh, Detective?” said the archivist, “we close in five minutes.”

“Fine, fine.” Florence reached for one of the notecards on the desk, scribbling down the case number she had come for. “Please notify me the moment this case is returned.” She paused. “And also, the next time this P.F. requests a record, I would appreciate notification.”

“Is she in trouble?” asked the archivist.

“No,” said Florence, “Not yet.”

After a few weeks she forgot all about the mysterious P.F. It might have had something to do with the fact that she was, it felt like, the only person who could request something from the city records and receive it immediately, even when other officers had requested it first.

In this matter, Florence decided not to question her good fortune.

  
  
  


_ City Hall _

City Hall always felt like a noisy place, despite how quiet people were in it, the huge space echoing with every small sound. Patty clicked her pen a few times, considering the question on the form in front of her.

_ What is your main reason for requesting a tugboat licence _ ?

Click-click, click-click, click-click-

“Can you  _ please _ ,” said the woman next to her, “stop doing that?”

Patty looked at her. “Probably, why?”

Click-click, click-click-

The woman made an annoyed sound at the back of her throat, reaching over to take Patty’s pen.

“Hey!” Several people turned to look at her, and Patty lowered her voice. “That’s  _ mine _ .”

“You’re disturbing everyone.”

“I think I’m only disturbing you, but okay,” said Patty. She leant forward, grabbing the pen back. “I’m not going to be here much longer anyway and then you can go on filling out you…” She squinted at the woman’s paper, trying to read the writing upside down. “PI licence? Oh, man, those are tough.”

The woman let out a breath, some of the annoyance fading from her expression. “It’s so… they need a lot more detail than I was expecting.”

“Yeah, they always do on these things,” said Patty. She leant forward over the desk that separated them. “Most of the time you don’t  _ actually _ need to give it. They basically just need the box ticked that you responded at all.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” said Patty, “how do you think Tyler Tailor Pierce got his licence?”

“Money,” said the woman.

Patty snorted. “I mean, yeah, but also he basically just answered yes or no to every question. Short sentences are key.”

The woman hummed. “I suppose that does explain why there’s only one line provided for each answer.”

Patty nodded. She looked back down at her own page. She could probably take her own advice here.

_ What is your main reason for requesting a tugboat licence _ ?

_ Answer: to legally sail a tugboat _

She clicked her pen off, making a face at the woman. 

“Last time, I’m done.”

“Thank you,” said the woman.

Patty laughed. “See you around Detective-” she peered over the read the woman’s form. “Slowly.”

“I’m sure,” said Detective Slowly.

She was a cool customer. Patty would definitely have to keep an eye out for her.

  
  
  


\----

+1

_ Boardwalk _

“This seat taken?” said Florence.

Patty shook her head, nudging the empty chair closest to her with her foot. Florence slipped off her coat, draping it over the back of the chair before she sat. The table Patty had chosen was out of the wind, and the early summer sun held warmth to it.

Patty took a slow sip. “I was hoping you’d show up.”

“Really?” said Florence.

Patty nodded.

“Why?”

Patty looked away, towards the ocean. She shrugged. “I like seeing you.”

“You could have asked me here before today, if you wanted to see me.”

“Took a while to write the right message,’ said Patty.

Florence wasn’t sure if the flush on Patty’s cheeks was from the sun or from her.

“I’m glad you did,” said Florence.

Patty looked back towards her, setting her cup down in front of her. “We should-” she wet her lips. “We should do this again sometime.”

Florence blinked. “This afternoon isn’t enough?”

“No,” said Patty, quickly.

Something caught in Florence’s chest, warm and new as the summer sun. “Oh.”

“Unless- If you don’t want to, you don’t-”

Florence reached out, quickly putting her hand over Patty’s. “No, I do. We should do this today, and then we should do it again sometime.”

“Maybe… maybe a few times?” offered Patty hesitantly.

Florence smiled. “At least a few.”

She kept her hand on Patty’s, twining their fingers together as they sipped coffee, watching the sun make its way below the ocean.

**Author's Note:**

> come say hi: mariusperkins on most places


End file.
